A report from the Consumer Focus organisation on the pay day lending market has recommended the extension of support for credit unions and an expansion of their services through Post Offices to address problems caused by high-cost, instant borrowing.

The Association of British Credit Unions has welcomed the Chancellor’s announcement in last week’s Budget of an additional £18.75 million for the Growth Fund, which credit unions use to make affordable loans to people on low incomes. This will allow an extra 85,000 loans to be made over the next two years.